With a U.S. immigrant visa, a person can stay in the United States for good. It lets you live, work, study, or do anything else you want in the United States.
When you get an immigrant visa, you don't have to renew it or make it last longer. It is suitable for life unless you do something illegal in the US and get your immigrant visa taken away. The immigrant visa doesn't force you to stay in the US, but as long as you have a valid Re-entry Permit, you can go in and out of the US whenever you want and not risk having your visa taken away or canceled.
Also, if you live in the US for a certain amount of time without breaking any laws, you can apply for citizenship. If your application is accepted, you will become a citizen of the United States.
Depending on how you get a permanent visa, they can fall into different categories. There are two main kinds of visas for immigrants:
Sponsored by immediate relatives and family.
Sponsored by an employer.
With an Immediate Relative visa or a Family immigrant visa, you can move to the US to live with your close family members who already live there. This could be your parents, your fiancé, or your partner. You can get one of these immigrant visas if you have family in the US or getting engaged or married to a US citizen.
The first type is visas for getting married in the US. People legally married to US citizens can get one of these visas. Living together does not make you married, so you must show documents to prove you are married. There are two kinds of visas for spouses.
Conditional Resident Visa. This means you are married and will have a conditional status for two years. This is done to stop people from getting married just to get permanent residency in the US.
Immediate Relative Visa. If you have been married for two years, you will get permanent status without the conditions of the Conditional Resident visa.
A person who is engaged to an American citizen and wants to visit the US for 90 days can get a K1 visa. During those 90 days, the couple should be married so that they can start the process of getting a spouse visa by filing a petition.
To get a K1 visa, you need to meet the following requirements:
Get married to an American citizen.
Have plans to get married within 90 days of coming to the US.
Have proof that you're together before you get engaged.
While you are in the US on a K1 visa, you can get married according to US law.
At least once in the last two years, you and the US citizen must have met in person.
You can get around this rule if you can show that the US citizen had to go through a lot of trouble to visit the foreign citizen's fiancé. Culture, customs, or other things can be used as proof of extreme hardship.
Any marriages you or your partner have been in before are legally over.
Work visas allow foreign workers to stay in the United States for a specified period, usually three years or less. The employee must have an employer who sponsors them and an immigration status that allows them to work legally in the United States. The company must also apply for the visa on behalf of its employee.
If you're unsure what visa suits you, contact an immigration attorney in Austin who can help guide you through the process.
Getting an immigrant visa can be confusing, especially if this is your first time applying for one. This article is created to guide and help you understand how the process works.
In Austin, many immigration attorneys work with visas for their clients. You'll want to look for an immigration attorney in Austin who has experience with the type of visa you need, as well as someone who has a good reputation within the community and can answer all of your questions.
Don't hesitate to contact an immigration attorney in Austin for advice on how to proceed. Lawyers from Lincoln-Goldfinch Law will be able to walk you through the process of applying for an immigrant visa. They are capable of helping clients get immigrant visas, whether they're sponsored by their family, immediate relatives, or sponsored by their employer.
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